Camping Misadventures
by Anashi Minamoto
Summary: When Koji, Koichi, Takuya, and Ami get lost in the woods, it takes Stormy asnd Darcy to help them out.


(_The Maco Light_ was written by Jim McAmis and Craig Dominey. I don't know who wrote _The Wolf Girl_)

"Where are we?" Takuya asked.

"The woods," Ami replied.

"Oh. What're we doing in the woods?"

Ami sighed, her patience wearing thin. "Because you had to go running off after some dumb animal, and now we're lost," she said, now annoyed.

"Oh yeah. I forgot about that," Takuya mumbled.

"You're an idiot," Ami muttered. "C'mon, we might as well try to get out of here while the sun's still up."

Takuya followed, saying, "It's just like being in the DigiWorld again, only, there are no Digimon here."

"Um...yeah, the same exact thing," Ami said, rolling her eyes.

_An hour later..._

"Why are you leading now?" Ami asked.

"Because if this really is anything like the DigiWorld, then I can get us out of here in no time!" Takuya replied.

"Uh-huh. Tell me, does that tree look familiar to you?" Ami pointed to a tree next to her.

Takuya shook his head. "No. Why?"

Ami sighed. "See where it looks like a rock was thrown at it?" she said. "I threw a rock there, and it left that mark about 45 minutes ago!" She sat down, angry. "Thanks to your clever work, we've been going around in circles!"

Meanwhile, not too far from Takuya and Ami, Koichi and Koji had decided to spend the weekend camping. Koichi thought he heard someone yelling. "Did you hear that?" he asked.

"What, you mean Ami yelling at Takuya?" Koji replied. "Yeah...Wait a minute..."

"Ami yelling at Takuya?" they said in unison. Both boys quickly got up, grabbed flashlights, and went to look for their friends.

"What are you two doing here?" Koichi asked when he and Koji found Takuya and Ami.

"Getting lost," Ami muttered.

Takuya shrugged. "What she said, I guess," he said.

"No, I mean what are you two doing here...you know, together?" Koichi said.

"Takuya saw a stupid little animal and decided to go after it, and I followed him to make sure he didn't get hurt," Ami said. "Stormy and Darcy come back from their vacation tomorrow, and Darcy would flip if anything happened to Takuya."

"Right now, we just wanna get outta here," Takuya moaned.

"We'll help," Koji said. "C'mon." He led the group to where he thought there was an exit, but he only ended up getting everyone even more lost that before.

"Great, now we're lost, too," Koichi said angrily. "Thanks Koji."

"Sorry," Koji said. "It was worth a shot though."

It was dark now. "Can I see your flashlight?" Ami asked Koji. He gave her his flashlight and she shined it over various areas around them. She gave it back to Koji, saying, "Well, it looks like we're stuck here for the night. Unless Takuya has another of his _brilliant_ plans."

Noticing the obvious sarcasm in her voice, Takuya said coldly, "Very funny, Ami."

Koichi walked away to get some firewood. He came back, running from a bear.

"What the?" Takuya exclaimed.

"Why is there a bear following you?" Ami asked, with vague amusement. Koji hid.

"Well, I accidentally stepped on his nose," Koichi replied.

"Real smart," Takuya said sarcastically.

Ami sighed and grabbed a large branch she had found on the ground. She threw it into the woods, knowing that if her plan worked, the bear would go after the source of the noise, and leave her friends and herself alone. But, the bear ran towards Takuya instead. "Okay, that didn't work," Ami muttered. She turned to Takuya and shouted, "Don't move, and he'll leave you alone!" Takuya nodded and stood completely still.

The bear attacked Takuya. "Nevermind. Takuya, get out of there!" Ami shouted.

"I know!" Takuya yelled back, running as fast as he could away from the bear. He decided to climb up a tree, out of the bear's reach.

The bear turned and chased Ami. "Not good," she muttered, running into the shadows and hoping it wouldn't find her. The bear walked away. Koichi climbed down from the tree he had taken refuge in. Takuya soon did the same. Ami stepped out from the shadows. Koji had fainted. Ami looked around for Koji, but it was dark, so it took her a few minutes to find him. When she did, she pulled him over to Koichi and Takuya and tried to wake him. Koji had been so scared, hehad wet himself. Ami sighed. Koichi laughed. Takuya grabbed a flashlight and went to find a river. He soon came back, his hat filled with cold water, which he dumped on Koji, in hopes of waking him up.

Koji awoke. "Are you okay now?" Ami asked him. Koji nodded. Ami smiled. "Good," she said. Koji sat up.

Takuya looked around, nervous. "Did you hear that?" he asked

"Probably just a rabbit, or something," Ami said, shrugging it off.

"Or Knut," said Koichi.

"Nah, he went with Stormy and Darcy, remember?" Takuya said. "And they're not gonna be back 'til tomorrow."

"Who care," Ami said. "It's not bugging us, so let's not bug it."

"Or Darkar," said Koichi. He shivered at that thought.

"I hope not," Takuya said.

Ami nodded. "To get your minds of what could be out around us, let me tell you boys a story about the Bell Witch Cave," she said. She began: "This is an American story. In the years immediately following the Civil War, the railroad was king. And if the railroad was king, its prince was the conductor. The engineer might have gotten to sit up front, blow the whistle and drive the train. But he couldn't move that train one inch until the conductor told him to. Joe Baldwin had always wanted to be a conductor. One day, he finally realized his lifelong dream when he was hired to be a conductor on the Wilmington & Manchester line. The W&M stretched from the coastal town of Wilmington, North Carolina westward to Columbia, South Carolina, then down to Charleston - a town that Joe loved and never tired of visiting."

Koichi waited. Koji yawned. Takuya sighed.

"Slow start, I know," Ami said, then continuing. "The beautiful homes, the water, and huge helpings of fried chicken and sweet potato pie that his friends cooked for him - it made his mouth water just thinking about it. Joe would appear at work every morning, smartly turned out in his clean, pressed black pants, starched white shirt, black leather vest and expertly-tied bow tie. On top of his head was the conductor's hat, with a medallion on the front that glistened like gold in the sunlight and read "Conductor." He always carried his lantern with him, along with a ticket punch and, of course, his railroad watch, for it was with that watch that Joe made his train run on time. Joe took very good care of his trains. Several times during a run, Joe would walk from one end of the train to the other checking everything he could think of. He would check the wheels to see if foreign objects from the tracks were stuck up in them. He would check the boxcars to make sure they were properly locked. He would make sure that the passengers had everything then needed, and that there was always enough oil for the lamps so they wouldn't burn out at night.  
One stormy night, as they were traveling through the swampy woods near Maco, North Carolina (a few miles west of Wilmington), and Joe was back in the caboose resting. He had just completed his rounds, and wanted to take a short break before they reached South Carolina. Dreams of Charleston danced in his head as the clickety-clack of the train wheels lulled him to sleep. One stormy night, as they were traveling through the swampy woods near Maco, North Carolina (a few miles west of Wilmington), and Joe was back in the caboose resting. He had just completed his rounds, and wanted to take a short break before they reached South Carolina. Dreams of Charleston danced in his head as the clickety-clack of the train wheels lulled him to sleep.  
Suddenly, the train started slowing down, and Joe instinctively woke up in a flash. Joe immediately got worried, for he knew it wasn't time for a stop yet. He jumped up, ran to the front of the caboose, opened up the door and stepped out for the next coach.

But there was no next coach!

Joe was horrified to see that the caboose he was riding in had somehow become uncoupled from the rest of the train. Somewhere in the distant darkness, the rest of his beloved train had left him behind.  
Joe knew he was in trouble, because right behind his train, he knew that a fast freight would soon be approaching. Joe ran out onto the rear landing and peered through the rain and fog, trying desperately to spot the train. Before long, way off in the distance, he saw a pinpoint of light, and he knew it had to be the freight train behind him. As the light got bigger, he could almost hear the wheels of the freight chugging toward him, louder and louder.  
Joe grabbed his lantern and started waving it frantically from side to side, hollering, "Hey! Stop! Hey!" He knew the freight engineer couldn't hear him, but he screamed anyway, waving his lantern wilder and wilder.  
The freight light grew bigger and bigger, and Joe heard the whooshing sound of the air brakes, then the sound of the freight locomotive going into reverse, its wheels spinning on the track. He saw the sparks flying off either side of the track like some surreal fireworks display.  
That was the last thing Joe Baldwin ever saw. For the freight smashed into his caboose with a deafening crash, splintering it into a million pieces.

Then there was silence on the tracks, save for the steam hissing from the freight train. The only light was from Joe Baldwin's lantern, which had been thrown deep into the dark swamp and continued to burn through the night.  
The next morning, the people that came to search the wreckage finally found Joe's mangled body near the caboose. To their horror, they found that he had been decapitated in the crash. They searched throughout the woods, but never could find his head - only his lantern, still warm to the touch. They carried Joe home and buried him without his head.  
A few weeks later, the station master at Maco stepped out onto the platform on another dark and foggy night. As he looked down the tracks, he thought he saw a little pinpoint of light coming toward him. He checked his watch - there wasn't supposed to be any train arriving then. The light kept moving down the tracks, as if it were someone carrying a lantern. Then it started to swing back and forth, slowly at first, but as it got closer to the station, it started to swing wilder and wilder. And then, it suddenly turned and went back down the tracks, until it disappeared into the darkness.  
The station master didn't know what to make of it at first, and eventually dismissed it from his mind. But then the light started coming back more and more, mainly on nights when there was stormy weather. Again, it would start as a tiny point, growing larger as it approached, swinging back and forth like a lantern, wilder and wilder. Then, as it neared the station, it would turn around and go back into the woods.

The station master wasn't the only one who saw the light. Engineers approaching Maco would see it along the tracks, and would stop their trains thinking it was a signal. They finally had to make a special rule at Maco where any signals to any train had to be done with two lights instead of one, and any single light signals were to be ignored.  
Folks began coming into Maco from all over to see what became known as the "Maco Light." Scientists even tried studying it to come up with a plausible theory, but never could figure it out. Some folks said it was a ball of lightning, or swamp gas. In later years, some believed it was automobile headlights reflecting off the tracks.  
But all the locals knew what it was - they knew it was Joe Baldwin coming back to look for his head!  
In 1977, the railroad shut down the line and tore up the tracks. When the tracks left, so did the light, and it hasn't reappeared since. Whether Joe Baldwin found his head, or found some other measure of peace, that was the last anyone ever saw of the Maco Light."

Ami looked around to see the boy's expressions. Koichi shivered. Takuya was shaking. Koji had fainted.

"I have a story. It's called _The Wolf Girl_," said Koichi.

"Cool, let's hear it," Ami said as she tried yet again to wake Koji.

"Well," said Koichi, "There was this man and woman and the woman was pregnant. Their neighbors took them to the hospital, but, during the trip, the man died from sickness. After the woman gave birth to her child, wolves came and killed the woman. The neighbors thought the girl was eaten. They buried the girl's mom. A couple years later, some people saw a naked blond girl by wolves. They took her to their house and at night, the wolves brought her back. A couple more years, the same men saw a naked blond woman feeding 2 wolf cubs. She saw them and ran off and that's all they know about wolf girl." He heard a wolf howl and shivered. Ami looked around, a bit nervously. Takuya just stared at Koichi, his eyes wide.

A naked girl walked out. She had blond hair. Koji was missing. "WOLF GIRL!" screamed Koichi. The 'Wolf Girl' laughed.

"Wrong, Niisan," said the girl, taking off her costume and it was really Koji.

"Koji! Why'd you do that?" Takuya shouted. Ami rolled her eyes. She started to say something, but thought better of it and kept quiet. Koichi got up and chased his brother.

"Okay then..." Takuya said, watching the twins.

Ami sighed and got up, saying, "Okay that's enough. Try not to kill each other, understand?" Koichi tackled Koji and Takuya into the river.

"Hey! What was that for?" Takuya yelled, climbing out of the river. Koji dragged him back in. He grabbed a branch and tried to reach for Koichi's hand. Koichi was pushed faster down the river. Ami pulled Koji out of the river while Takuya swam after Koichi. Koichi fell down the waterfall. Koji helped Takuya out. But Takuya pushed Koji away and ran towards the waterfall. Ami soon followed.

It was getting too dark. They were never going to find Koichi until morning. "We should wait until morning when Stormy and Darcy come. The more to help us would be better and Stormy can shock Koichi until he coughs up water and Darcy can find stuff with her mind." said Koji. Ami nodded pulled the reluctant Takuya with her, back over to Koji. Koji waited for morning. Takuya had fallen asleep.

A few minutes later, Koji heard Knut, Stormy and Darcy walking closer. Takuya woke up. He yawned and looked around, incase Koichi had found his way back to the group somehow. But, of course, Koichi wasn't there. Knut walked to them. Darcy soon followed. Stormy walked to them.

"Darcy, I need your help. We need you to see if you can find Koichi's heartbeat," said Koji.

Darcy nodded. "Alright," she said. She focused on finding Koichi's heartbeat, and soon said, "He's this way, follow me." She went of to the right somewhere, with Takuya and Ami following. Stormy, Koji and Knut followed soon after. When they found Koichi, Stormy began to shock him a little, trying to revive him. She began to cry.

"C'mon Koichi," Takuya muttered, "Wake up."

"This isn't good," Ami mumbled, shaking her head in disbelief.

Stormy began to cry. She began to glow. Her charmix appeared. It was pink and shaped like a cloud. She used her thunder attacked again. As Koichi awoke, Stormy's charmix disappeared into her body.

"Whoa," Takuya and Darcy said softly. Koichi and Stormy kissed. Takuya hugged Darcy.

Ami smiled slightly. "Everything's back to normal, sort of," she said quietly.

Koji yawned. "Okay, let's get outta here," Ami said.

"Hold on," Takuya said, "It's daytime now, and we can see, so let's have some fun."

Ami shook her head. "I really don't think we should," she said.

"Why so serious all the time, Ami?" Takuya asked. "Life's out there waiting for you to take a chance, but you ignore it."

"I just know the difference between fun and work," Ami replied coldly.

Takuya rolled his eyes. "Whatever," he muttered. Ami smirked and pushed him into the river, then dove after him when he did came up soon enough.

"Wow, you're right. I DO need to take a break from being so serious all the time!" Ami said, laughing as she climbed out and pulled Takuya out.

"Do me a favor, and NEVER LISTEN TO ME AGAIN!" Takuya yelled.

"Gladly," Ami replied.

Stormy kissed Koichi deeper. He was now blushing.

Takuya sighed. "Okay, NOW we can get outta here," he said, a bit angrily.

Ami sighed and wrung out her hair. "I've gotta remember to never do that in a damned skirt again," she mumbled to herself.

Koji, sneakily, pushed Stormy and Koichi into the lake. Stormy and Koichi floated up. Takuya and Darcy laughed. Ami wasn't paying much attention. Koichi and Stormy got up and pushed Koji and Darcy into the lake. Darcy got out and walked over to Takuya while Ami helped Koji out. "Okay, that's enough trouble for now," she said. "Let's go." Takuya and Darcy nodded in agreement. Darcy cast a spell that showed the group their way out. Stormy and Koichi walked out. Koji and Ami ran out. Takuya and Darcy soon followed.


End file.
